State Park: Pontiac Lake Recreation Area #2 (Hiking)

 Place: Pontiac Lake Recreation Area... again!

Winter 2011 - on the trail with Duke

Today's Activity: Going back in time... comparing winter and summer pics of another part of the park (you need to cross Gale road).


Duration: Eh, usually no longer than an hour because Duke's getting old...


Time: winter 2011 / summer 2012 - afternoons


The Experience: Pontiac Lake is definitely one of my favorite parks because of its closeness to the house as well as the secluded trails. In the winter though, it's an entirely different experience, especially when it's not sunny. These next set of photos are when I didn't know any better and took Duke on the bike trails, because they just looked like trails to me. Normally I don't take him on them because you never know when someone will zip around the corner and break your face.

winter 2011

winter 2011

winter 2011 - I really do love the all the shades of brown, even though they
don't seem to compare to summer colors, it really is lovely.

winter 2011 - Duke is the best hiking buddy. Ever.

winter 2011- He thinks he's a model. 

winter 2011 - grey skies, I'll take 'em.

Now, my favorite place to take Duke is across Gale road to this field which leads to the biking and hiking trails, which take you back into the main part of the park or campgrounds. You can see how differently it looks in the winter vs. the summer:

Winter VS Summer #1

Winter 2011 - the beginning of the trail to the field

Summer 2012 - almost the exact same shot 

Winter VS Summer #2 

Winter 2011 - the field across Gale road

Summer 2012 - almost the exact same shot, but where's the tree?

Winter VS Summer #3

Winter 2011 - the field across Gale road

Summer 2012 - almost the same shot again :) I didn't even plan this...

Here are some winter shots of some trails and more majestic Duke pictures:

Winter 2011 - it would appear that there ARE
some hardcore winter bikers out there...

winter 2011

winter 2011 - someone apparently had some shooting practice here...

Winter 2011

Winter 2011 - Oh how I love the woods...

Whose a good boy?

Winter 2011 - Pontiac Lake, only frozen this time

And to finish, let's jump back to the present with some recent summer '12 shots:

Leaving the field to the path that connects to the main
hiking/biking paths

Duke is so curious.

He is also an expert in camouflaging himself. I mean, look at him!
Oh wait you can't because he's so hidden! 

Path gets narrower...

aaaaaand here we are!

This reassures me that I will not be plowed over while
enjoying my stroll.

And this reassures me that I might be target practice
if I'm not careful...

 Stay safe, have fun, go outside!